Monday, October 31, 2022

Numbers 29:23

Numbers 29:23 says, And on the fourth day ten bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish:  Verse twenty-four adds, Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:  The number of bullocks for the burnt offering continued to decrease, but but rams remained the same.  The meat and drink offerings were to be the same for each animal.  Verse twenty-five continues, And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.  Again, the sin offering was one kid goat, and this was in addition to the normal burnt, meat, and drink offerings.   If we give to a special offering, I don't believe that we should consider our regular tithes and offerings to be a part of the special offering.  Verse twenty-six states, And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without spot,  Verse twenty-seven adds, And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:   Verse twenty-eight continues,  And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.  The number of bullocks continued to decease, and the amount of the meat offering decreased by the amount required for the bullocks.  Verse twenty-nine says, And on the sixth day eight bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish:  Verse thirty adds, And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:  Verse thirty-one continues, And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.  Though the number of bullocks decreased, all the animals were still to be without blemish.  We are to bring the best that we have to God.  Verse thirty-two states, And on the seventh day seven bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish:  Verse thirty-three adds, And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:  Verse thirty-four continues,  And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.  These once more were in addition to the normal offerings, and there was still only one young goat for the sin offering, just as Jesus Christ is our only acceptable sin offering today.  Verse thirty-five says, On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no servile work therein:  On the eighth day, the people of Isreal were to have a solemn assembly, and again were to do no unnecessary work.  We too often declare nearly everything to be necessary work on the Lord’s ’s Dsy, instead of setting it aside strictly to worship Him.  We may also make it necessary for others to work instead of being able to rest and worship God.  Verse thirty-six adds, But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish: The number of bullocks and rams decreased to one, and the number of lambs decreased to seven.  Verse thirty-seven continues, Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullock, for the ram, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:  This meant that the amount of the meat and drink offerings would also decrease, since they were determined by the number of animals in the burnt offerings.  Verse thirty-eight concludes, And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.  The sin offering remained the same, and as always was separate from all other offerings.  Any offering we bring to God todsy must be to accomplish His work and bring honor and glory in Him, but it can never atone for our sins.  Accepting Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord is the only way to have our sins atoned for, since He alone is the only acceptable sin sacrifice.  Verse thirty-nine states, These things ye shall do unto the LORD in your set feasts, beside your vows, and your freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your meat offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for your peace offerings.. God said that these things were to be done in addition to the normal offerings.  God may at times call on us to give extra to His work, but as long as we acknowledge that everything belongs to Him to start with, we should never have a problem with this.  Verse forty adds, And Moses told the children of Israel according to all that the LORD commanded Moses. Moses told the people of Israel what God had said,  as so must we as Christians tell the people of the world what God has said.

Sunday, October 30, 2022

Numbers 29:12

Numbers 29:12 says, And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work, and ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days:  On the fifteen day of the seventh month the people of Israel were to have a holy gathering that would last a week, during which they were to do no work.  We as Christians used to have week long revivals when we gathered together to worship God.  Of course, we still worked during that week, but now it seems that it is too much bother.  Verse thirteen adds, And ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year; they shall be without blemish:  The burnt offering was to be more than normal.  Verse fourteen states, And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto every bullock of the thirteen bullocks, two tenth deals to each ram of the two rams,  Verse fifteen adds, And a several tenth deal to each lamb of the fourteen lambs:  There was also an increase in the meat offering to go along with the burnt offering.  Verse sixteen continues, And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.  These were in addition to the normal offerings.  The sin offering did not increase.  There is but one offering for sin, and that is Jesus Christ, even though the kid goat without blemish represented Him then then.  Verse seventeen says, And on the second day ye shall offer twelve young bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without spot:  Verse eighteen adds, And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:  On the second day of this holy week, they were to bring another offering for the burnt sacrifice and the necessary items for the meat offering and drink offering.  God still expects us to give all that is necessary to insure that His work is done and His name is glorified in the world today. Verse nineteen continues And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering thereof, and their drink offerings.  Again, the sacrifice for the sin offering did not increase.  Verse twenty states, And on the third day eleven bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish;   Verse twenty-one continues, And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:  They were to again bring a sacrifice on the third day, though the amount was decreased again for the burnt and meat offering.  Verse twenty-two concludes, And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.  The sin offering remained the same, and all these offerings were in addition to the normal offerings.

Saturday, October 29, 2022

Numbers 29:1

Numbers 29:1 says, And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you.  Ths first day of the seventh month the people of Israel were to have a holy gathering.  They were to do no work and it was to be a day of blowing trumpets.  Matthew Henry says this was the time between harvest and planting when the people had more free time, and that God wanted it devoted to Him.  We likewise need our free time to be devoted to God.  Verse two adds, And ye shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish:  On this day, they were also to offer a burnt offering to God, consisting of one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish.  Verse three continues, And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram,  Verse four concludes, And one tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs:  The amount of the meat offering, which consisted of flour mingled with oil, was also specifed for each of the animals of the burnt offering.  As always with their sacrifices, God directed them in what to give and how much to give, and we need to allow Him to do so in our lives today.  Verse five states, And one kid of the goats for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you:  Verse six adds, Beside the burnt offering of the month, and his meat offering, and the daily burnt offering, and his meat offering, and their drink offerings, according unto their manner, for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.  They were also to offer a young goat as a sin offering for atonement for their sins, in addition to all the other offerings which were still to be offered as well.  Though Jesus is our sin offering for all our sins for all time, we are still to bring our tithes and offerings to God, and I believe to use all that we have left for accomplishing His work for His glory.  Verse seven says,  And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein:   Also in the seventh month on the tenth day they were to have a holy meeting and set the day aside for God and do no unnecessary work.  It seems that today we want to set less and less time aside for God.  Verse eight adds, But ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD for a sweet savour; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year; they shall be unto you without blemish:   Verse nine continues,  And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals to a bullock, and two tenth deals to one ram,  Verse nine concludes, A several tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs:  The things to be used in the burnt offering and the meat offering were once again specified by God.  I believe we need to allow God to direct our giving today as well.  Verse eleven states, One kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the sin offering of atonement, and the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering of it, and their drink offerings.  Once more, they were to offer a young goat for a sin offering for atonement from their sins.  We can offer nothing todsy for atonement from our sins, but must accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, since He is the only acceptable sacrifice for sin.

Friday, October 28, 2022

Numbers 28:24

Numbers 28:24 says, After this manner ye shall offer daily, throughout the seven days, the meat of the sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: it shall be offered beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering. There was to be a daily meat sacrifice during the seven days of passover, in addition to the already burnt and drink offerings given daily.  Verse twenty-five adds, And on the seventh day ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work.  There was to be no work done on the seventh day during their convocation, or gathering to worship God.  Verse twenty-six states, Also in the day of the firstfruits, when ye bring a new meat offering unto the LORD, after your weeks be out, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work:  The feast on the day of Pentacost is then detailed.   They were to bring a new meat offering to God during their convocation, and once again they were to do no work.  We may not have particular feast days, but everyday that we gather together in God's name should be a day of offering all that we have to Him.  Verse twenty-seven adds, But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year;  They were to bring two young bullocks, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year for a burnt offering.  Verse twenty-eight continues, And their meat offering of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto one bullock, two tenth deals unto one ram,  The meat offering was to be flour mingled with oil, three tenths deals to one bullock and two tenth deals to one ram.  Matthew Henry says the burnt offerings were chiefly for the benefit of God to show His dominion, and the sin offerings were to show the love of Christ that they were looking forward to and that we look back on as He died for our sins.  Verse twenty-nine states, A several tenth deal unto one lamb, throughout the seven lambs; Verse thirty adds, And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you.  There was also to be a young goat sacrificed in atone for their sins.  Verse thirty continues, Ye shall offer them beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings.  These offerings were also be in addition to the continual burnt offerings and meat offerings.  At times, God may call on us to give more than just our normal offerings, and when He does we need to give the best we have so that He might be glorified.  

Thursday, October 27, 2022

Numbers 28:11

Numbers 28:11 says, And in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, seven lambs of the first year without spot;  God then gave Moses instructions for the monthly offering the people of Israel were to offer for a burnt offering.  This was in addition to the daily offering.  It was to be two young bulls, one ram and seven lambs less than a year old and without s spot, or blemish.  Verse twelve adds, And three tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one bullock; and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one ram;  Verse thirteen continues, And a several tenth deal of flour mingled with oil for a meat offering unto one lamb; for a burnt offering of a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.  They were also to bring four mingled with oil to be used with the meat and burnt offering.  Verse fourteen concludes, And their drink offerings shall be half an hin of wine unto a bullock, and the third part of an hin unto a ram, and a fourth part of an hin unto a lamb: this is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year.  There was also instructions for the drink offerings to be used in the sacrifices.  Though Jesus Christ is the only acceptable sacrifice for our sins, God still expects us to bring our tithes and offerings to him to be used in the carrying out of His work in the world, and He expects us to bring the best that we have to Him.  Verse fifteen says, And one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the LORD shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.  There was a separate offering for the sin offering besides the continual burnt and drink offerings, and Jesus Christ alone is our everlasting offering for our sins.  We can give our tithes and offerings generously, but if we do not accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, they will be meaningless.  Verse sixteen states, And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD.  Verse seventeen adds, And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.  Moses was then to once again give God's instructions for the yearly Passover observance.  Though God through Moses had already given the people of Israel these instructions before, a new generation was now making up the nation of Israel, and God wanted to make sure they knew His laws, just as we must share the gospel of Christ with each new generation and teach them what God's word says.  Verse eighteen continues, In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein:  The first day of te Passover was to be set aside totally to God, with no work being done.  We still need to set aside time dedicated totally to God, daily, weekly, monthly and yearly, or at all times, sometimes individually and sometimes when we gather together to worship Him.  Verse nineteen says, But ye shall offer a sacrifice made by fire for a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, and seven lambs of the first year: they shall be unto you without blemish:  Verse twenty adds, And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil: three tenth deals shall ye offer for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram;  Verse twenty-one continues, A several tenth deal shalt thou offer for every lamb, throughout the seven lambs:  Verse twenty-two concludes, And one goat for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you.  There were specific instructions for the Passover celebration, just as there are specific ways that we should worship God today, and that is by giving Him our best daily, weekly, monthly and yearly, so that His work can be carried out for His honor and glory.  Verse twenty-three states, Ye shall offer these beside the burnt offering in the morning, which is for a continual burnt offering.  Moses was to tell the people that the Passover was in addition to daily morning burnt offering, which was a perpetual offering.  Though Jesus Christ is our Passover offering, freeing us from the death sentence of sin forever, we are still, to bring our tithes and offerings to God. 

Wednesday, October 26, 2022

Numbers 28:1

Numbers 28:1 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse two adds, Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season.  God told Moses to tell the people of Israel that they were to offer bread made for sacrifices by fire to Him as a sweet savor in due season.  Matthew Henry points out that this was a new generation, and that though God had already given His law, it was to be repeated to them so that they could not claim to have never heard it, and that they were now going to war, but this did not exempt them from obeying God's law.  Our offerings to God today are still a sweet savor to God and should be offered in due season, or at the time they are due.  We are still to make sure that the next generation knows God's law, beginning with knowing that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation, and we are to do this even as we are at war with the world.  Verse three continues, And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering.  God then specified what this burnt offering was to be, two lambs of the first year without blemish, or the best of their lambs.  God should still guide us in what we offer to Him today, but the first thing we must offer is ourself through putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Then, we should offer the best of everything else that we have to Him.  Verse four concludes, The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even;  One of the lambs was to be offered in the morning and one in the evening, which would basically mean that they were dedicated to God all day and all night. We are likewise to offer the best that we have to God, day and night, or continually.  Verse five states, And a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil.  The offering was to also include an ephah of flour mingled with a fourth of a hin of oil beaten in as a meat offering.  Verse six adds, It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.  Moses was to remind the people that this sacrifice had been ordained at Mount Sinai when God's law was first given.  God's law does not change from generation to generation, nor from situation to situation.  Verse seven says, And the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering.  They were also bring a drink offering of strong wine to be poured out to the LORD in the holy place with the one lamb.  Jesus Christ became our bread and wine offering to God, by sacrificing His body and blood on the cross.  Verse eight adds, And the other lamb shalt thou offer at even: as the meat offering of the morning, and as the drink offering thereof, thou shalt offer it, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.  The other lamb with te wine was to be offered in the evening.  There is not a time of the day when we as followers of Christ should not offer the best that we have to God.  Verse nine states, And on the sabbath day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and the drink offering thereof:  Verse ten adds, This is the burnt offering of every sabbath, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.  The offering on the sabbath day was to be more than on any other day.  I believe that God still expects us to keep the sabbath, or as we now observe,  the Lord’s Day, as a time to rest and worship Him.  

Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Numbers 27:12

Numbers 27:12 says, And the LORD said unto Moses, Get thee up into this mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given unto the children of Israel.  God told Moses to go up on the mountain so he could see the Promised Land.  We will  never see heaven in this lifetime, but we may get glimpses of what it may be like.  Verse thirteen adds, And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered.  God told Moses that after he saw the Promised Land that He like Aaron would die to go to be with God's people in his heavenly home.  We as followers of Christ will also go to our heavenly home after we die, to be with all those who have gone on before us.  Verse fourteen continues, For ye rebelled against my commandment in the desert of Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the water before their eyes: that is the water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.  God then told Moses why he wasn't going to be allowed to go into the earthly Promised Land, and that was because he had disobeyed God in striking the rock in anger to bring forth water in the desert, thereby dishonoring God.  As Christians, our actions that go against what God tells us to do may have consequences that affect our work for Him here in this life, but like Moses we will still go to our heavenly home, because that is based on our relationship with JesusChrist, and not on our works.  Verse fifteen states, And Moses spake unto the LORD, saying, Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation,   Moses acknowledged God as the God of the spirits of all the people.   God is indeed the God of the spirit, the everlasting part of people, of all mankind, whether they acknowledge it or not.  He also asked God to appoint someone else to be over the people of Israel.  Moses was still concerned about the people of Israel, even though they had caused him so much grief.   We need to be just as concerned about the leadership of God's people today, asking Him to appoint God led people into places of leadership in the church today.  Verse seventeen adds, Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.  Moses asked God that He appoint them a new shepherd to guide them.  We have the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ to guide us today by the leadership of the Holy Spirit, but we still need Godly people to guide the congregations as we gather and work for God's glory today.  Verse eighteen declares, And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him;  God told Moses to take Joshua, one of the two good spies and in whom was the Spirit of God, and to lay his hands on him.  As followers of Christ, we all have the Holy Spirit living in us, but God still calls some to lead the earthly congregation today, and we must acknowledge them as such.  Verse nineteen adds, And set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight.  This was to be done in the presence of Eleazar, Aaron's replacement as priest, and all the congregation.  We need to do everything in the church today openly and under God's guidance.  Verse twenty continues, And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient.  God told Moses that he was to put some of his honor on Joshua, so that the people might follow him.  We must make sure, even if we have been a great leader in the church, that people recognize we are not the one to be followed, but only God is.  Verse twenty-one concludes, And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before the LORD: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.  God said this was to be done in the presence of Eleazar the priest, so that the people would know that God had placed Joshua in charge of leading them as to when it was time to move or stop, but this was still to be by God's command.  The leaders in the church today must be led by the Holy Spirit in all that they do if they are to be effective leaders, and the congregation needs to be willing to support them.  Verse twenty-two says, And Moses did as the LORD commanded him: and he took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation:  Moses did as God instructed him to do, and that is all we can do today as Christians if we want to be effective in reaching the lost and guiding God's people if we are so called to do if we are to be effective in our calling as followers of Christ.  Verse twenty-three adds, And he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.  Moses laid his hands on Joshua and gave him the charge to now lead God's people on to the Promised Land.  God will always have someone else to take our place in the church today as long as we are always acting under His leadership.